Urolithiasis: morphological and constitutional profile of stones at a university hospital in Senegal

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the physical and chemical composition of urinary stones treated at our centre.

Methods: This was a prospective, descriptive, monocentric study conducted over 18 months (May 2018 to November 2019). The following parameters were studied: age, gender, radiological findings, stone topography, stone collection method, morphological type of the stones, and the chemical composition of the stones. The stones were analysed at the Institut Pasteur laboratory in Dakar.

Results: A total of 45 patients were included in the study. The male-to-female ratio was 1 : 7. The mean age was 43.9 ± 20.5 years. The 40–60 age group was the most represented (33.3%). Kidney stones were present in 55.6% of patients. Ureteral stones represented 20% and bladder stones 24.4%. Conventional surgery (nephrolithotomy and ureterolithotomy) was the most frequent mode of stone collection (91%). Analysis after stone sectioning showed that the majority of stones were types IVa (57.8%), IIb (44.4%), and Ia (24.4%). On spectrophotometry, whewellite (91.1%) was the most frequent crystalline form of the stones followed by carbapatite (84.4%) and weddellite (48.9%). Calcium oxalate was the most common component in the stones (53.3%). The composition of the stones was heterogeneous in 93.3% of the cases.

Conclusion: The physical and chemical characteristics of the stones in our series show a predominance of calcium oxalate and calcium phosphate stones, which is now in line with the Western profile.